Triplets' 2 Year Letters! What?!

To the three of you:

I can NOT believe that you are two. That TWO WHOLE YEARS have passed since your arrival into the world. When I look at you, I still see my babies, which is probably why we all still call you "the babies," when in reality, you are no longer that at all. You are big, and strong, and filled with personality and knowledge. Every. Single. Day. I am amazed by each of you together and individually. I just adore spending my days with you. You make me laugh, cry, and feel so very loved. I pray that I make each of you feel that way too. I am grateful to be your Mommy, I know that the Lord has infinitely blessed our family by sending the three of you to us.

Dear Jackie,

Here we are! 2 years into your life. At the risk of sounding cliche, I truly feel that these two years have gone by in the blink of an eye. I almost can't remember them having happened at all!

But it HAS passed. Because here you are, asking for "wah-dee" (water), and wanting to join in all the fun. ("Too! Too!") Your vocabulary is growing at a rapid pace, and you are able to communicate most things through words. It takes a special ear to translate some of those words, but you are coming along quite well.

But when you are fed up, and tired of trying to use those darned words, you tend to resort to screaming and biting. Much to the dismay of your siblings. To be perfectly fair, though, you are still the most amazingly laid back child I have ever seen! You are patient and enjoy just going with the flow. You play well with others. You play well by yourself. There have been many times when I have come out to the playroom to find you sitting by yourself with a book or your cars; playing contentedly amidst the chaos around you. You are the eye of our storm. :) These characteristics will serve you well in this large and crazy family, my dear!

A relatively new development for you is that you have made a friend. Outside of your siblings, that is. You ADORE "Connoo" (Connor), who is the oldest child (age 9) of Charlie and Liv's former baby-sitter. They live around the corner, and every time we drive by their house, you get so excited and start yelling his name. The same thing occurs when we walk into the chapel at church and you see them sitting there. This is a bit more disruptive, but it's so sweet to see how much you love him.

Besides this friendship with Connor, you have really grown in your relationships with your siblings as well. They all love you to pieces, and you love them just as much. You love to give hugs and kisses, and you will find and give them their favorite toys when they are sad. You've never been one to be upset when others are upset, but you know what to do to make them feel better...and you DO IT! Perhaps, a therapist in the making? :) Grammy would be proud! But being able to witness this sensitivity and kindness in you is such a blessing as a mother.

There are a couple other interests of yours that have caught my attention lately. First, you like to clean up! Seriously. You LIKE it! You will grab a bin of toys, dump it out, play with it (or not), and then put all of the toys back in. And then you will repeat the process. This, in and of itself, isn't incredibly surprising. Toddlers often love to dump, and then sometimes put things back IN. But you take it a step further. The other day, you were walking around the house in Daddy's shoes...a fun past-time for you and Luke. I told you it was time to get in the car. So you walked over to where you found the shoes, took them off, and laid them back where they were. But that wasn't enough. You then noticed that they were crooked. So you bent down and straightened them so they were laying parallel to each other!  And "Ewww! Yucky!" is a phrase I hear a lot from you. You'll say this even when things are just cluttered. I have this feeling I won't have to tell you repeatedly to clean your room when you get older. I'm good with that.

The second thing you've been enjoying lately is signing. There really is no need for a radio in our car, because you serenade us all the way to our destination. And you're good! You have mastered the tune of The ABC Song/Twinkle Twinkle Little Star/Baa Baa Black Sheep. I can't wait for you to learn the words to see which one you are really singing! There is also a movie all of the children enjoy called "The Fairies." There is one particular song in it that I recognized when you started singing it a couple months ago. After MANY listens, and MANY times singing it together, you get the notes right on that one too. Pretty impressive! (And yes. I'm bragging a little here. But you deserve it!) And, I have to mention the Jackie-dance. Oh my goodness! You bounce your short little legs and bob your head. PRE.CIOUS!

Oh! And the potty. You LOVE the potty! Haven't done much more than sit on it, but you sure do love it. And it seems to be your favorite place to read a book. Hehe!

Mostly, Jack, I just couldn't be happier to have your in our family. There are so many wonderful things you bring to us, and we are all benefited and bettered by them. There is no one you can't charm, and nothing you can't do. The future is SO very bright for you, and I am drinking in every moment of your development, and relishing the chance to see you grow. You are a special child of God, and I love you dearly.

Happy Birthday, Jackie!

Love,
Mommy



Dear Lukie,

2 years ago today, the nurses laid you on my chest in the recovery room to help regulate your breathing. We sat that way for a good long time...a memory I will forever cherish. And then, on the way to the well-baby nursery, they changed their minds and sent you to the NICU for a couple nights. It's hard to believe that you are that same baby boy. There is NOTHING weak about you now. You are the first of my children to climb out of their crib. You climb the couch, the table, and the fence. You are a little Hudini in your carseat and stroller. I have to belt you in REALLY tightly to keep the straps on you. You can jump with both feet, and walk down steps without holding on to anything. I can't hang anything on my walls. In other words, you constantly keep us on our toes.

During these first two years of your life, you have see-sawed back and forth between wanting almost NO cuddling, and needing to be held every. single. second. We are currently in the midst of the most clingy phase yet. And while it's very difficult to cook a meal with you hanging on my clothes, and it's torture for me to take a shower while you wail at the bathroom door, I find comfort in the fact that you DO like some cuddle time. :) So I try to give you special one-on-one attention when I can. But for those times when I need to be with other children or doing other tasks, you have developed your own comfort strategy. The bunny you never really cared much about, but sat in your crib at night, has now become a trusted companion.

When you are in a good mood, it's easy to tell. Those are the times we you become a talker. You babble on and on about everything around you. Your vocabulary is expanding rapidly, but you love to talk about cars, trucks, Jack, and dogs.

Speaking of dogs. You are terrified of them, but you are also fascinated with them. The more you see them, hear them, and are around them, the more you are beginning to like them. Just one more way you are a like your big brother Charlie. He was the exact same way. He was also infatuated with shoes. So, yeah, you love those too! You want them on so that you can turn around and take them off. You walk around in Daddy's shoes, Charlie's shoes, and Livy's shoes. The other day, you were (successfully!) walking around in my high heels! Your balance in amazing. :)

Like Jack, you have also started singing a lot more. But you don't sing tunes that we recognize. Instead, you make up little songs and sing quietly to yourself. You have the sweetest little voice! And I love when you get up enough courage to dance. You usually hang back and watch everyone else's moves, but lately you've started to loosen up and get out on the dance floor!

We are also seeing some signs that you might be ready to start using the potty in the near-ish future. You don't particularly like to sit on the big one, but you tell me when you need a diaper change, and often you will let me know BEFORE you go. But I'm not potty training this time around. It's up to you three to let me know when you're ready. I'm in no hurry. :)

All in all, I can not express how important you are to this family. You bring so much love and tenderness, while at the same time sharing with us so much energy and fun! While I watch you grow into what I know will be the most amazing boy and man, I will forever remember you as that precious baby I held close during those first couple of hours of your life. Feeling your little chest breathing in and out. Luke, you are so special, and this entire family loves you immensely.

Happy Birthday, Lukie!

Love,
Mommy



Dear Wendy,

Where do I begin? I am glad that I saved your letter for tonight, because something amazing has happened to you today. Yesterday, you were my baby. I could not begin to see you as a 2 year old. But today, you woke up, climbed out of your crib for the first time, and walked out of your bedroom and into mine...beaming. You skipped your nap. Your new found skill was put to good use, as you simply climbed out of the pack n play and spent two hours playing quietly in Liv's room. This resulted in a cat nap on the car ride to get Charlie and Liv from school, but even with that little amount of sleep, you were in a fabulous mood the rest of the day! Such big girl things to do!

As always, you are "little miss social." You love people, and you are so very kind to them. You wave and say, "hi!" And you always wish us a "Good Morning" when we come into your room in the morning. You give the most incredible hugs. The feel of your little arms around my neck is one of the greatest feelings in the world. You make friends with everyone, but you do it in such a calm way. While your big sister is overtly outgoing and loud (in a good way), you are much more quiet, but so very endearing! You just exude love.

Along with your endearing personality, you have the flirty facial expressions to go right along with it. No one has done the "Shy Di" glance better than you since Diana herself! I sit across from you at lunch time, and you spend a good portion of the time making these faces at me. It's become a little game that we have, and it's always good for a laugh. :)

It took you a little longer than your brothers, but you are starting to use a lot more words. In the past, you've relied on non-verbals, which probably explains why you have such great facial expressions. But now you like to tell us when things are "hot," or when you have "poo poos" that need attending to.

While your vocabulary is growing, so is your ability to throw a decent tantrum. Man, can you ever have a meltdown! In this way, you are a typical toddler. If someone takes a toy you are holding, your first move is to throw yourself on the floor and scream. If someone takes a toy you were finished using, you will run at them screaming. If someone takes a toy you hadn't been using, but then realize you SHOULD be using, you will grab that toy, and run away screaming as that child pursues you in earnest. :)

There seem to be two major loves in you life. The first is Dolly, who you now call "Yaya." We bought her for you for Christmas last year, and it took you awhile to warm up to her. But now she is the go-to for comfort when you are upset, and of course, she is your snuggle buddy at bed time. The other love of your life is Olivia. If  Dolly doesn't fix the problem, Olivia will. Sometimes she will sing to you, sometimes she just puts her arm around you. But inevitably, she will calm you down. The two of you play so well together, and I love to hear the sounds of your laughter as she bounces you on her belly. This is one of the relationships I look forward to seeing grow the most. And at this rate, you two will be the best of friends.

I am grateful for you Wendy. Your sweet, loving spirit helps me throughout the day. You make me smile, and you fill me with joy, day in and day out. There are so many wonderful things in store for you in this life! And I know that you will bless the lives of so many people. Thank you for all the good you continually give to us, just by being you.

Happy Birthday, Wendy Jane!

Love,
Mommy